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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. chair — a leader
  3. fine — all right
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. degree — from a university
  6. suit — in cards
  7. degree — temperature
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. last — final
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. last — to go on
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. shower — to wash
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. shower — rain
  19. fine — high quality
  20. degree — an amount
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. last — finally
  24. suit — clothes

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com